Afghan Officials Lower Death Toll From Deadly Collision

A man injured in the accident is brought to a local hospital in Ghazni.

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Afghan Officials Lower Death Toll From Deadly Collision

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Afghan officials have lowered the death toll from a deadly collision between two passenger buses and a fuel tanker that collided on a major highway in eastern Afghanistan.

Jawed Salangi, a spokesman for the Ghazni governor, said 52 people were killed on May 8 in the Muqur district of Ghazni, on the main highway linking the capital, Kabul, to the southern city of Kandahar.

Ismail Kawusi, a Health Ministry spokesman, said the higher toll of 73 given by the government was due to "technical difficulties" with the flow of information from hospitals.

Dozens more were injured in the collision that set all three vehicles ablaze.

Muqur police said they were investigating the cause of the accident but said early findings indicate that the crash was caused by reckless driving.

Traffic accidents are common in Afghanistan, where the rules of the road are rarely enforced and highways are often in poor condition.